But even though we know where our fingers have been — in public restrooms, on the dog, under the couch cushions digging for the lost remote — we still bite our fingernails.

Part of the problem is that there is no recognized handbook — pun intended — on how to stop biting your nails. Thus, parents have a tried a variety of tricks over the years.

Among them:

The They’ll-Grow-Out-of-It Solution — You may want to find an alternative, especially if your child’s fingertips or cuticles bleed and become infected, which does happen.

The Distraction Solution — Many children bite because they’re bored, as during long car rides. So parents find something — from coloring books to books to video games — to keep their children’s hands occupied.

The Scare-‘Em-Straight Solution — You may have heard that, if you bite your nails too much, a disgusting lump of old nails will form in your stomach and rip your guts apart. Yep, Stephen King has nothing on grandma.

The Fingernail-Polish Solution — For girls, nice-looking nails that have been polished and manicured can prevent biting.

The Chili-Powder Solution — Sprinkle a little chili powder on the fingertips or dip the hand into a little jalapeño juice. This plan may backfire for Mexican-food lovers, however.

There’s also this approach: Teach children about germs and how they operate.

“If they’re educated and know what can be under their fingernails,” Janes says, “you’d think they would stop on their own.”

But old habits die hard. What would it take for Boyett to stop biting his fingernails?

“I don’t know,” he says, “maybe another limb to chew on.”

My mother tried putting that chile mixture on my hands and look where it got me!

I was a committed nail biter way into my mid 40’s, a habit which I disliked but was unable to break. I finally managed to stop about five years ago and have never looked back. What worked for me was firstly letting the nails on my little fingers grow and then my third fingers and so on. I found that having some good nails inspired me to break the habit.

I bite my nails till there is almost nothing left. If I’m in public I am always tucking my fingers away. My pinky fingernails are disgusting. They have indentions and holes in them. I can already see a bruise forming on my pointer fingernail. I don’t think the look of my nails are caused by internal diseases. I believe it’s my chronic nail biting that’s making them look horrible. I’m doing a research paper on finger nail biting. 🙂 😐

Im a horrible nail biter. I started about a year ago and am still doin it today. I’ve noticed the nail polish thingy doesnt work on me. And I love spicy things and jalapeno’s….so, that would tempt me more! lol